tlongII
04-09-2011, 01:55 AM
http://www.oregonlive.com/blazers/index.ssf/2011/04/portland_93_la_lakers_86_lamar.html
http://media.oregonlive.com/oregonian/photo/2011/04/9472025-large.jpg
Portland's Gerald Wallace and Ron Artest (15) of Los Angeles exchange words in the fourth quarter Friday night at the Rose Garden. The two players both drew technical fouls in the quarter.
Oh, it was quite the scene at the Rose Garden. There was theater. Dramatics. Some rough play. And, of course, suspense.
Yes, the Lakers were back in town, which seems to bring out the best in the Blazers, and Friday night was perhaps the best the Blazers have been this season.
The Blazers continued their late-season run through some of the best in the West, this time jumping to a 24-point lead against the two-time defending champions before holding on for a 93-86 win.
Andre Miller was throwing pinpoint lob passes. LaMarcus Aldridge was operating inside and outside. And Gerald Wallace was doing a whole lot of everything as he continues to reshape the look and feel of the Blazers.
It was a convincing and aesthetically pleasing display, and when Wallace continually engaged in rough-housing with Ron Artest, it only added to the frenzy rollicking throughout the sold-out arena.
"It has been a long time since I've seen the Rose Garden like this," Nicolas Batum said. "That means the playoffs are coming."
Indeed, and the Blazers' first-round opponent could very well be these Lakers. With two games remaining, the Blazers (47-33) are in sixth place in the West, a half-game ahead of New Orleans. However, the Blazers will need New Orleans to lose at least once because the Hornets own the tiebreaker. If New Orleans wins out, the Blazers would fall to seventh, or eighth.
The Lakers (55-24) have lost four in a row, and have all but locked up the second seed. They will face the seventh-place team.
If the Lakers and Blazers match up, it figures to be entertaining as well as physical, judging from the last two meetings in which Wallace and Artest have squared off and received double-technical fouls.
"It was a point that needed to be made: I wasn't going to back down to him," Wallace said. "I play just as physical as he does. You know, it's a physical game and that's just how things go."
And thanks to Wallace, the Blazers are now a team on the go. With his offensive and defensive versatility and his all-out effort, Wallace has changed the Blazers since being acquired at the trading deadline. The Blazers are 10-4 with Wallace as a starter.
"His name is no longer Gerald Wallace, it's MVP," said LaMarcus Aldridge, who did his own Most Valuable Player impression with 24 points, 11 rebounds and four blocks. "He's taking charges, blocking shots, he rebounds well, making big threes. ... He's been huge for us. I think people told me how tough he was, but you don't know how tough he is until he plays. He puts it all out there."
Wallace had 19 points, 13 rebounds and seven assists, but he wasn't alone in making an impact.
Miller had 12 points and 13 assists, five of the assists coming on lob passes. He also sparked an offensive game plan that emphasized running in order to offset the Lakers' decided size advantage.
It worked, as Portland outscored the Lakers 20-6 in fast-break points.
"When is the last time we've scored 20 fast-break points?" coach Nate McMillan said, smiling.
One of the Blazers fast breaks came when Miller darted a pass from just inside the halfcourt line that bounced perfectly to Wallace in stride for a layup.
"He was pretty precise," Aldridge said of Miller. "He threw that one bounce pass from halfcourt and I was like, 'Can you do that again?' And he (said), 'Probably not.'"
It was great theater in the first half as the Blazers were running and alley-ooping, and the Lakers were answering with three consecutive three-pointers from Bryant. After an Andrew Bynum travel, Bryant hit another three-pointer, this one from even deeper, drawing Los Angeles within 53-47 at halftime.
The Blazers appeared to put the Lakers away in the third, taking a 74-50 lead with 5:08 left. But like the last two meetings, the Lakers fought back, scoring the final 12 points of the third to get within 74-62 entering the fourth.
But this time, there would be no heroics from Bryant, try as he might. Bryant finished with 24 points, but he needed 25 shots, and even though he got the Lakers within 84-77 with 2:09 remaining, Batum hit a big three-pointer with 1:47 left to put the Blazers up by 10.
"After what happened the last two games against these guys, it was like, OK. No. We won't lose this one," said Batum, who scored 13 points. "We had to get a little nasty, a little tricky, but we did it. It was like a playoff game."
http://media.oregonlive.com/oregonian/photo/2011/04/9472025-large.jpg
Portland's Gerald Wallace and Ron Artest (15) of Los Angeles exchange words in the fourth quarter Friday night at the Rose Garden. The two players both drew technical fouls in the quarter.
Oh, it was quite the scene at the Rose Garden. There was theater. Dramatics. Some rough play. And, of course, suspense.
Yes, the Lakers were back in town, which seems to bring out the best in the Blazers, and Friday night was perhaps the best the Blazers have been this season.
The Blazers continued their late-season run through some of the best in the West, this time jumping to a 24-point lead against the two-time defending champions before holding on for a 93-86 win.
Andre Miller was throwing pinpoint lob passes. LaMarcus Aldridge was operating inside and outside. And Gerald Wallace was doing a whole lot of everything as he continues to reshape the look and feel of the Blazers.
It was a convincing and aesthetically pleasing display, and when Wallace continually engaged in rough-housing with Ron Artest, it only added to the frenzy rollicking throughout the sold-out arena.
"It has been a long time since I've seen the Rose Garden like this," Nicolas Batum said. "That means the playoffs are coming."
Indeed, and the Blazers' first-round opponent could very well be these Lakers. With two games remaining, the Blazers (47-33) are in sixth place in the West, a half-game ahead of New Orleans. However, the Blazers will need New Orleans to lose at least once because the Hornets own the tiebreaker. If New Orleans wins out, the Blazers would fall to seventh, or eighth.
The Lakers (55-24) have lost four in a row, and have all but locked up the second seed. They will face the seventh-place team.
If the Lakers and Blazers match up, it figures to be entertaining as well as physical, judging from the last two meetings in which Wallace and Artest have squared off and received double-technical fouls.
"It was a point that needed to be made: I wasn't going to back down to him," Wallace said. "I play just as physical as he does. You know, it's a physical game and that's just how things go."
And thanks to Wallace, the Blazers are now a team on the go. With his offensive and defensive versatility and his all-out effort, Wallace has changed the Blazers since being acquired at the trading deadline. The Blazers are 10-4 with Wallace as a starter.
"His name is no longer Gerald Wallace, it's MVP," said LaMarcus Aldridge, who did his own Most Valuable Player impression with 24 points, 11 rebounds and four blocks. "He's taking charges, blocking shots, he rebounds well, making big threes. ... He's been huge for us. I think people told me how tough he was, but you don't know how tough he is until he plays. He puts it all out there."
Wallace had 19 points, 13 rebounds and seven assists, but he wasn't alone in making an impact.
Miller had 12 points and 13 assists, five of the assists coming on lob passes. He also sparked an offensive game plan that emphasized running in order to offset the Lakers' decided size advantage.
It worked, as Portland outscored the Lakers 20-6 in fast-break points.
"When is the last time we've scored 20 fast-break points?" coach Nate McMillan said, smiling.
One of the Blazers fast breaks came when Miller darted a pass from just inside the halfcourt line that bounced perfectly to Wallace in stride for a layup.
"He was pretty precise," Aldridge said of Miller. "He threw that one bounce pass from halfcourt and I was like, 'Can you do that again?' And he (said), 'Probably not.'"
It was great theater in the first half as the Blazers were running and alley-ooping, and the Lakers were answering with three consecutive three-pointers from Bryant. After an Andrew Bynum travel, Bryant hit another three-pointer, this one from even deeper, drawing Los Angeles within 53-47 at halftime.
The Blazers appeared to put the Lakers away in the third, taking a 74-50 lead with 5:08 left. But like the last two meetings, the Lakers fought back, scoring the final 12 points of the third to get within 74-62 entering the fourth.
But this time, there would be no heroics from Bryant, try as he might. Bryant finished with 24 points, but he needed 25 shots, and even though he got the Lakers within 84-77 with 2:09 remaining, Batum hit a big three-pointer with 1:47 left to put the Blazers up by 10.
"After what happened the last two games against these guys, it was like, OK. No. We won't lose this one," said Batum, who scored 13 points. "We had to get a little nasty, a little tricky, but we did it. It was like a playoff game."